This invention relates to a method and tool for providing massage therapy, physical therapy and/or chiropractic therapy. The tool is used to apply pressure to muscles used in various therapeutic techniques such as trigger point, friction, effleurage and muscle stripping. These techniques are foundational to muscle therapy. The apparatus and method of the invention for the treatment of soft tissue injury may be utilized by professional health care providers, massage therapists, and lay people.
In the past, there have been problems and limitations with respect to tools and methods for the treatment of soft tissue injuries including myofascial pain and cumulative trauma disorder, sometimes called repetitive stress injury. The terms myofascial pain, cumulative trauma disorder, repetitive stress injury and soft tissue injury have each been used to refer to muscle, tendon or ligaments having the condition where maximum tissue strength or maximum work strength has been exceeded causing damage resulting in chronic edema.
The treatment tool of this invention is designed to overcome various deficiencies and limitations in prior treatment tools and methods. Once such limitation stems from the fact that muscle therapy is accomplished by applying pressure to the muscle. Accordingly, the provision of continuous therapy requires significant stamina from, and tends to be extremely taxing on the therapist. Because of this, the therapist often suffers from intense muscle strain over the course of time. Most commonly, the therapist suffers from fatigue, and sometimes injury, to his or her hands, wrists and elbows. Moreover, depending upon the stamina of the therapist, such strain may affect the quality of the therapy delivered to the patient. This may also affect the amount of therapy that the therapist can deliver, and in turn, patient satisfaction and hence the likelihood of return clientele. This is a known problem which exists within the industry, and therapists have been known to leave the profession because of it.
Another problem that is associated with known therapy tools is that they often have a tendency to slip out of the therapist's hands. Because the therapist seeks to deliver a high degree of pressure to treat the patient, any tendency of the treatment tool to slip out of the therapist's hands during use exacerbates the risk of injury to the patient and/or therapist.
Another problem that is associated with known therapy tools is that they are typically limited in the types of treatment that can be delivered to the patient. More particularly, such tools are typically directed to trigger point therapy, that is the application of a focused therapy to a limited area of muscle such as by use of a tool having a rounded-end pointer area. Many if not most therapists, however, use at least several treatment techniques, in addition to trigger-point therapy, such as cross-fiber friction and muscle stripping.
There are various tools sold for use in the treatment of muscle therapy. One such tool is sold under the name "Knobble Whole-Body Muscle Massage." The Knobble tool is made of wood and comprises a handle grip portion attached to a tip designed to deliver trigger point therapy. Another such tool designed to deliver trigger point therapy is sold under the name "Dolphin Massager" by R. Haynes Enterprises of Auburn, Calif. This tool is made of plastic and shaped in the form of a dolphin, having fins that are contoured to deliver trigger point therapy. Such tools suffer from various problems and limitations discussed above. For example, such tools do nothing to address the problem of therapist fatigue, nor do they provide a means by which the therapist may gauge the amount of pressure being applied to the subject area of the patient. The therapist must apply a significant amount of force when using these tools to perform trigger point therapy, as the requisite therapeutic pressure must be provided solely by the therapist. Additionally, such tools suffer from a risk of slippage from the therapist's hands upon the application of high pressure. Such tools also suffer from the limitation that they are can not be used to provide means to deliver therapy other than trigger point therapy.
Another known massage tool is sold under the name "Mob-Assager" by Life and Health, Inc. of Newport Beach, Calif. This relatively lightweight tool is made of a pair of relatively soft roller bulb-type members associated with an elongated handle. The handle extends beyond the roller members to thereby provide a grip area for each of the user's hands. Such therapy tools suffer from various problems and limitations such as noted above, including fatigue of the user and failure to provide multiple therapy techniques.